Doctrinal Statement
The Holy Scriptures
We believe in the verbal plenary (complete) inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, which stand alone as the authoritative, inerrant, and complete Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Matthew 5:18; John 16:12-13).
Godhead
We believe in one Triune God, existing in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, eternal in being, identical in nature, equal in power and glory and having the same attributes and perfections (Deuteronomy 6:4; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
The Person and Work of the Father
We believe that God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, is the Heavenly Father of all who have come to a saving knowledge of His only begotten Son whom He sent into the world that the world through His Son might be saved. (John 1:14; 20:17; Romans 4:11; 1 Peter 1:3-5, Galatians 4:4-7, John 3:16-17).
The Person and Work of Christ
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man through the miraculous virgin birth, was completely human and divine; came to reveal God and redeem sinful man; that His substitutionary death on the cross and bodily resurrection accomplished man’s redemption through His shed blood (John 1:12-14; Luke 1:35; Rom. 3:24-25; 4:25; 1 Pet. 1:3-5); that He is now seated at the right hand of the Father in Heaven fulfilling the ministries of High Priest, Representative, Intercessor, and Advocate (Hebrews 7:25; 9:24; Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:12).
The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, indwells all believers in the present age, baptizes them into the body of Christ at salvation, seals them unto the day of redemption, and that it is the duty of every believer to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 12:12-14; Ephesians 1:13-14; 5:18). We believe the miraculous sign gifts ceased with the close of the apostolic era and the completion of the New Testament (1 Corinthians 13:8-10).
The Sinfulness of Man
We believe that man was created in the image of God, but that in Adam’s sin the race inherited a sinful nature, became alienated from God, experienced spiritual death, and is totally incapable of retrieving man’s original condition (Genesis 1:26- 27; Romans 3:22-23; 5:12; Ephesians 2:12).
Salvation
We believe that salvation for all men (the forgiveness of sin and eternal reconciliation to God) was purchased by the precious blood of Christ and is a gift of God’s grace received solely by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ apart from all human effort (John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10).
The Eternal Security of Believers
We believe that all believers are kept secure forever (Romans 8:1, 28-39; John 10:27-30; I Corinthians 1:4-8).
The Priesthood of the Believer
We believe that every believer today is a priest of God and may enter into His presence in prayer directly through our Great High Priest, Jesus Christ. No other mediator is needed between God and a believer. As priests, believers can study God’s Word, pray for others, and offer spiritual worship to God. All believers have equal access to God – whether they are a preacher or not (1 Peter 2:5, 9; Revelation 5:9-10).
The Church as the Body and Bride of Christ
We believe that the church is the body and bride of Christ, a spiritual organism comprised of all born-again persons of this age, initiated through Spirit Baptism at the moment of salvation (Ephesians 1:22-23; 5:25-27; I Corinthians 12:12-14).
The Church as the New Testament Assembly
We believe that a New Testament church is a congregation of baptized believers associated by a covenant of faith and fellowship of the gospel; practicing autonomous operation and congregational church government; meeting for worship and observing the two ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper; under the authority of Scripture, guidance of the Holy Spirit and the mandate of the Great Commission.
Church Ordinances
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ instituted the ordinances of Baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper to be observed as local church ordinances until His return (Matthew 28:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26). These ordinances are not a means of grace, but symbolic memorials.
The Person of Satan
We believe in the person of Satan, who is the open and declared enemy of God and man (Job 1:6-7; Matthew 4:2-11; Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:13-19).
The Blessed Hope
We believe in the imminent return of the Lord Jesus in the air to receive to Himself the dead in Christ and believers who are alive at His Coming, otherwise known as the Rapture and Translation of the Church (1 Corinthians 15:51-57; I Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:11-14).
The Tribulation
We believe that the Rapture of the Church will be followed by the fulfillment of Israel’s seventieth week (Daniel 9:27), a seven-year period, the latter half of which is the time of Jacob’s trouble, the great tribulation (Jeremiah 30:7; Matthew 25:15-51; Revelation 6).
The Second Coming of Christ
We believe the climax to the great tribulation will be the return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth to establish his literal 1,000 year (millennial) kingdom on earth (Zechariah 14:4-11; Matthew 24:15-25, 46; II Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 20:6).
Eternal State
We believe that the souls of those who have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation do at death immediately pass into His presence, and there remain in conscious bliss until the resurrection of the body at His coming, when soul and body reunited shall be associated with Him forever in the glory. But the souls of unbelievers remain after death in conscious misery until the final judgment of the great white throne at the close of the millennium, when soul and body reunited shall be cast into the lake of fire, not to be annihilated, but to be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power (Luke 16:9-26; 23-43; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; II Thessalonians 1:79; Jude 6-7; Revelation 20:11-15).
The Responsibility of Believers
We believe that all believers should walk in the Spirit so as not to bring reproach upon their Lord and Savior; that separation from sinful practices (worldliness and carnality) is commanded by God (Romans 12:12; 14:13; II Corinthians 6:14-17); that it is the obligation of every believer to witness by life and word to the truths of God’s Word; to seek to proclaim the Gospel to all the world (Acts 1:8); to remember the work of the Lord in prayer and through financial support as the Lord has prospered them (I Corinthians 16:2).
Individual Soul Liberty
We believe that every individual, whether a believer or an unbeliever, has the freedom to choose what is right in the religious realm according to the dictates of his or her own conscience or soul. Soul liberty requires the believer to accept responsibility for his or her own actions while not trying to force anyone else to do or believe anything contrary to his or her own conscience. However, this liberty is not a justification for disobeying God or for being an offense to a brother or sister in the faith. Believers must still act according to the principles of Scripture and honor the doctrinal position of the church of which they are a member (Romans 14:12-21; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11; Galatians 5:13; 2 Timothy 2:14-16).